Solana Says Hizbullah Part of Lebanese Political Life, Praises Climate of Accord
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana held unprecedented talks with a Hizbullah official on Saturday in Beirut and acknowledged the party”s status as a legitimate member of parliament and political life in Lebanon.
On his meeting in parliament with MP Hussein Hajj Hassan, Solana told reporters: "I met with the representative and spokesman a parliamentary bloc. Hizbullah is represented in parliament and bears responsibilities."
"Lists of terrorist groups are not the same in every country," Solana told a news conference when asked about the U.S. blacklist of Hizbullah.
"But Hizbullah is a member of the Lebanese society and it is represented in the Lebanese parliament," he said before leaving for Egypt at the end of a two-day visit.
Solana said Lebanon”s rival political leaders "realize the responsibility they face" and he expected them to "find a way to push the country forward and form a cabinet" as soon as possible.
"We are sensing a climate of accord" across the political board, he added.
The European Union does not blacklist Hizbullah as a terrorist organization and Britain said earlier this year it plans to authorize low-level contact with the group.
Solana announced he will be returning to Lebanon in the near future "to see what the European Union can offer."
For his part, Hajj Hassan told AFP the meeting "means more EU overture towards Hizbullah, and one at a higher level.
"This also means better communication for the European Union with the region and its parties," he said, adding that the move will "move the EU towards more realism."
On Hizbullah”s weapons arsenal, Hajj Hassan said: "Solana brought up the subject and I replied that the issue of strategic defense was an essential topic on the agenda of national dialogue and for President Michel Suleiman and that it was still under debate."
Hajj Hassan is among 11 Hizbullah candidates who won seats in the 128-seat parliament.
Solana, who also met with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman and several senior politicians and officials, said the EU "is pleased with the 2009 parliamentary election results … since they reflected the maturity of the country.
"This will help very much open a new page for the future of the country, prosperity, democracy and peace," Solana said after talks with Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh.
"The EU will continue to support Lebanon, and the EU will continue its efforts, in regard to pursuing peace in the Middle East, in cooperation with the international community and the United States," he added.
"The road to peace is a comprehensive process, and requires efforts by all sides. No process is independent from the other."